Poll: How Many Games Will Hornets Win?
After finishing the 2011-12 season with a disappointing 21-45 record, the Hornets look ahead to next year with hopes of making drastic improvements. The team has had a strong offseason thanks to new owner Tom Benson, who has made a strong commitment to making the Hornets as viable as his beloved Saints.
From extending head coach Monty Williams' contract to having a successful draft, the Hornets may be ready to improve upon last year's struggles. The question becomes how many games will the Hornets win next season given the moves they have made during the offseason.
Vernon Macklin Signing With Turkish Team
Former Pistons power forward Vernon Macklin will take his talents abroad next season as he is expected to sign with Gaziantep of Turkey, according to his agent Greg Nunn who spoke with HoopsHype. Macklin, 26 in September, averaged 2.0 PPG and 1.5 RPG in 23 contests with Detroit during the 2011-12 season.
"Vernon decided to turn down three NBA camp invites," Nunn said. "He feels he needs to play to showcase his talents and return to the NBA next year."
Macklin became an unrestricted free agent earlier this offseason when the Pistons did not extend the former Florida big man a qualifying offer. Since then, Macklin has drawn attention from a variety of NBA teams including the Nets, Suns, Wizards, Bucks and Lakers. The second-year forward thrived during a stint with Fort Wayne as he averaged a double-double in the D-League over the course of 10 games.
Hornets Sign Monty Williams To Contract Extension
The Hornets and head coach Monty Williams agreed to a four-year contract extension over the weekend that will keep him in the Big Easy through 2016, writes John Reid of The Times Picayune. The 40-year-old former NBA forward enters his third season with New Orleans after enjoying success in his debut campaign and struggling last year in the wake of Chris Paul being traded to the Clippers. With a series of key moves through the draft, free agency and trades this offseason, Hornets executive Mickey Loomis expressed excitement about Williams' ability to develop the young pieces around him into a championship contender.
"He knows and we know that he’s here for the long term as we develop a young team into a championship contender," Loomis said. "I’ve been very impressed with Monty since we purchased the team."
The team should have no problem improving upon its 21-45 record from the 2011-12 season thanks to the addition of eight new players including Anthony Davis, Austin Rivers, Ryan Anderson and a healthy Eric Gordon, who missed most of last season due to injury. Time will tell how playing in the Olympics and spending time with world-class players has positively impacted Davis' development. With a new contract in place and a strong new ownership group, Williams' attention can be completely focused on getting the most out of his players on the basketball court.
"I’m aware of the work ahead of us, but that’s what we all want," Williams said. "But at the same time, to have Mickey and Mr. Benson step up to the plate and just say this is the guy we trust going forward, they will never know how that makes me and my family feel. That’s a pretty profound statement."
Odds & Ends: Olympics, Blazers, Jason Terry
With the Olympics in the books and the start of the 2012-13 nearly three months away, we've hit a lull in the year where basketball of any sort still remains weeks, not days, away. Make sure you take a moment to catch up on our features and other original content to help you get your NBA fix. With Friday nearly in the books, here's the latest news and headlines from around the league…
- Much speculation has been made about a possible age limit for the 2016 Olympics in Rio where only players 23 and under would be eligible to play for their country. Patrick Baumann, the head of FIBA, conducted an in-house interview on Friday and announced that FIBA has no plans to implement an age restriction for 2016.
- Beyond adding three assistant coaches to the mix on Friday, the Trail Blazers will retain former NBA guard Hersey Hawkins as the player development director, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Dan Dickau's future as an assistant to Hawkins remains unclear as he is a part-time employee (via Twitter).
- Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld says Jason Terry will be key to the Celtics' title hopes given his experience with the Mavericks. Even though the Heat will remain the favorite entering the season, Ingram believes the Celtics will be contenders as the 2012-13 season approaches.
- Celtics assistant general manager Mike Zarren has emerged as a contender for the Sixers' general manager position, reports SI.com's Sam Amick. The position has become more desirable as a result of the team acquiring All-Star center Andrew Bynum via trade earlier this month.
Deron Williams Talks Olympics, Barclays, Season
Nets.com writer Ben Couch had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Deron Williams upon the All-Star guard's return to Brooklyn after the Olympics. The two-time Olympic gold winner admitted his latest medal hasn't really left his neck since receiving it on Sunday. Here are a few highlights from the conversation:
On what it feels like to win a second gold medal during the Olympics:
It means a lot. I think it's really special to be an Olympian, to have that honor just to be an Olympian. But to win two Gold Medals is a great accomplishment — there's only eight people that have done that as far as basketball is concerned. I definitely feel honored to have had the opportunity.
On how he developed a relationship with the many talented players on the roster as a point guard:
It's a little bit of both: it's easier, just because you have so many weapons and you know it can come from anywhere on any given night. But for the most part, you don't play like you do during the season; you kind of have to adapt and adjust, and that takes some getting used to. But I think it's fun, and I think we enjoyed it.
On his perceptions of the Barclays Center and his level of excitement to play there:
I'll be surprised if it's open in a month, from looking at it. I kept messing with them: 'You guys got a lot of work to do in the next 43 days.' We'll see, but I went a week before I left (for the Olympics) — so about six weeks ago — and the changes from then to now, you definitely can see them. And I went a couple of months before that, and it didn't look anything like it does now, then. So they're definitley making progress. They're working on it 24-7, they've got the scoreboard up. I went and saw my suite, where my family's going to sit during games. So that was cool.
On the moves the Nets made during the offseason and how he thinks the team will fare in 2012/13:
I thought we made great moves. I think we'll put a great team out there. It should be an exciting team. Only time will tell how good we can be, once we get into training camp and see how we mesh and jell.
Blazers Add Three Assistants To Coaching Staff
The Trail Blazers announced on Friday the addition of three assistant coaches to Terry Stotts' coaching staff, according to a team report. Jay Triano, David Vanterpool and Kim Hughes are headed to Portland to join Kaleb Canales, who will return as an assistant after serving as interim head coach. Stotts may be in the market to add one more assistant to fill out his bench.
Triano, 53, most notably served as the head coach of the Raptors for three seasons before transitioning into his most recent position as the organization's vice president of professional scouting. After being drafted by the Lakers in the eighth round, Triano headed to Europe to play professionally for three seasons.
Vanterpool, 39, leaves a scouting position with the Thunder to join the staff in Portland. The former St. Bonaventure star served as an assistant coach for CSKA Moscow after his playing career ended.
Hughes, 60, served as interim head coach for the Clippers after the franchise parted ways with Mike Dunleavy during the 2010 season. The former Badgers big man dominated during his time at Wisconsin before enjoying a successful professional career both domestically and abroad.
Olympics Notes: Bryant, James, Popovich
Kevin Durant's strong performance throughout the Olympics served as a major reason why Team USA's leaving London with gold. The three-time reigning NBA scoring champion averaged 19.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 2.6 APG over the course of the Olympics. Let's catch up on the latest news and headlines from London…
- Doc Rivers endorses Doug Collins to succeed Mike Krzyzewski as head coach of Team USA.
- One of the many secrets to Kobe Bryant's success has been Dr. Judy Seto, the Lakers' physical therapist, writes Mike Trudell of NBA.com. Dr. Seto's so important to Bryant that she's accompanied Bryant to the last two Olympics to ensure his health while playing abroad. Bryant wanted to have Dr. Seto's services entirely to himself during the 2008 Olympics so he didn't tell Lakers teammate Pau Gasol that she was in Beijing.
- LeBron James joined Michael Jordan as the only players to win NBA title, Olympic gold, NBA regular-season MVP and NBA Finals MVP in the same year, tweets Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Durant stands as the most likely player to join this elite club in 2016 when the Olympics head to Rio.
- With Krzyzewski set to call it an Olympic career, much conversation has come up regarding his replacement. Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports says both Rivers and James believe Gregg Popovich should be the next USA Basketball head coach (via Twitter).
Team USA Knocks Off Spain To Win Gold
Team USA secured its second straight gold medal after defeating Spain 107-100 on Sunday in London. Strong play from LeBron James and Kevin Durant, who led all scorers with 30 points, allowed Team USA to match Spain for three quarters and pull away in the fourth. Kevin Love continued with his dominant post play as he grabbed nine rebounds to go with nine points.
The victory gave head coach Mike Krzyzewski his 62nd and final win with Team USA as he is set to step down from the position. Kobe Bryant, in his final Olympic appearance, scored 17 points, but deferred to James as the reigning MVP took over in the fourth quarter with his all-around outstanding play. Coach K expressed sheer jubilation by jumping up and down on the sidelines once the outcome was no longer in question.
Durant leaves London as the most prolific scorer in Team USA history over the course of one Olympics. The Oklahoma City star scored 156 points over the course of the tournament to add to the growing scoring accolades he's earned over the course of his young career.
For Spain, Pau Gasol's standout performance wasn't nearly enough as the team was plagued by Marc Gasol's early foul trouble. Former Grizzlies guard Juan Carlos Navarro seemingly scored at will early in the game, but disappeared later in the contest. While Spain came up short, they gave the United States all they could and nearly came away with the upset.
Winderman On Camby, Rebounding, Cuban
The Heat made a series of moves this offseason that will make their title defense more of a palatable endeavor when the 2012/13 season begins this fall. While the Heat should have minimal trouble returning to the NBA Finals, barring injury, the true test will be the presumed showdown with the Lakers in June, who appear to be favorites in the West thanks to their acquisition of Dwight Howard. Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel examines a potential Finals matchup between Los Angeles and Miami…
- Winderman says the Heat wouldn't have pursued a big like Marcus Camby even if the trade for Howard took place earlier in the summer. The difference between Andrew Bynum and Howard on the offensive end of things isn't as much as people give Superman credit for as he heads West. The biggest issue in a Finals matchup would be the Lakers' ability to stop LeBron James.
- The notion that the Lakers have more size than the Heat and therefore will win the battle of the boards doesn't ring true for Winderman. He says the Heat have the ability to put a big lineup on the court with Chris Bosh playing center and James at power forward. The issue for the Heat, however, may be their lack of brawn as compared to the Lakers.
- Look for Mavs owner Mark Cuban to make some sort of public comment about the rich getting richer with regard to the Lakers acquiring Howard, says Winderman.
Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Sixers, Jon Scheyer
The battle for the Atlantic Division title may end up being the most competitive race in the NBA next season. With all five teams making serious moves in the offseason, a strong argument could be made that the Nets are as likely to take the division as the Celtics. Let's catch up on the latest news and headlines from the Atlantic Division…
- Ray Allen spoke about his time with the Celtics and his decision to sign with Miami this offseason while visiting UConn on Saturday, writes Don Amore of the Hartford Courant. "I was a free agent," Allen said, "and I had to make a decision I definitely thought was best for me to move forward. I'm excited about where I'm going. … I don't know what to expect, but I know what I expect from myself."
- John N. Mitchell of The Philadelphia Inquirer says the Sixers should be excited by their acquisition of Andrew Bynum as he brings myriad qualities to the paint for Philadelphia. Not only does Bynum bring incredible size and the ability to score with ease to the Sixers, the seven footer has championship experience with the two rings he won with the Lakers.
- After spending the summer playing with the Sixers in Orlando for the NBA Summer League, former Duke star Jon Scheyer appears headed to Spain this season to play for Gran Cranaria, writes Wendell Maxey of Ridiculous Upside. Scheyer is looking to increase his playing time after struggling to earn minutes with Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv in Israel last season.